The science-fiction and fantasy universes are chock full of fictional games: "Tron" has the gladiator-style "lightcycle" and "identity disc" games; "Star Trek" has ‘"Dom-jot"(a dangerous game for Captain Picard) and the Vulcan "Kal-toh"; "Battlestar Galactica" has the very athletic "Pyramid"; "A Song of Ice and Fire" has the ever-changing "Cyvasse."

But perhaps no other fictional sport has been more relevant, more deeply seared into the world-wide cultural consciousness than the fast-paced, dangerous, high-flying game of Quidditch.

J.K. Rowling's chronicles of Harry Potter's magical world - written over 14 years ago - introduced this fantastic game as the favorite pastime of witches and wizards.

And even though Quidditch started as a written description, over the past few years college and high school students across the country started establishing Muggle Quidditch teams. (In the Harry Potterverse, a Muggle is a human with no magical abilities.)

They play a sport created by Middlebury College students Alex Benepe and Xander Manshel, who applied real-world, Muggle physics to the fictitious, magical game. Muggle Quidditch, or simply “Quidditch” for short, was first played at Middlebury College in Middlebury, Vermont on October 9, 2005.

Benepe and Manshel wrote a 39-page instruction book entitled “Intercollegiate Quidditch Rules and Guide-Book” which explains every rule, foul, and position of the game and how to start your own Quidditch league, among other information.

This year, 2,000 competitors from 100 teams and five countries will compete in the 5th annual Quidditch World Cup (QWC). And, for the first time, teams from outside North America will compete. Not surprisingly, though, Middlebury College is the school to beat, as they’ve won the QWC for the past three years. FULL POST

After the massive box office success of “The Dark Knight,” the buzz surrounding the final film in Christopher Nolan’s “Batman” trilogy, “The Dark Knight Rises” continues to grow.

Bat-fans like Kevin Smith (who recently shared his conspiracy theory about the film) are especially excited about it. One such fan is Gabe Waxman, who was lucky enough to have the movie shooting practically at his front door.

“I was aware they'd be filming a few weeks ahead of time, but I never imagined seeing as much as I did,” he told CNN Geek Out, about the shoot taking place next to his Manhattan office. “Not only did I luck out by having a window facing wall, I also have a balcony which I can go out and see the entirety of Wall Street.”

Waxman shot footage of several exciting fight and stunt scenes from his window, and uploaded the videos and photos to CNN iReport.

“As a photographer and filmmaker myself, I wasn't going to let all of this excitement take place in front of me without sharing it to the world.”

About this Blog

It takes one to know one. When it comes to topics of interest to nerds, geeks, and superfans, we know how true that is. Geek Out! features stories from a nerd's perspective that you can still share with your "normal" friends and family.